December 13th, 2025 Devotional

🌿 LIVING WATER VINEYARD DEVOTION

🎄 Christmas Traditions — Saturday

✨ “The Light That Never Goes Out”

If Friday was about life,

Saturday is about light 💡

A long time ago—centuries after Saint Boniface—another man was walking through a dark winter forest 🌲❄️

He wasn’t preaching.

He wasn’t confronting idols.

He was just a dad… and a pastor… heading home.

His name was Martin Luther.

One cold December night, Luther stopped beneath a wide, quiet sky 🌌

Tall fir trees surrounded him, their branches stretching upward, and above them the stars burned bright and steady ✨

Their light filtered through the needles and settled softly on the snow.

He stopped.

He looked up.

And right there in the stillness… he worshiped 🙏

Then a simple thought came to him:

I want my kids to see this.

So he took the moment home with him 🏡

Luther brought a small evergreen into his house 🌲

He placed candles on its branches 🕯️

And one by one, he lit them.

As each flame came to life, the room grew brighter.

This wasn’t about decorating.

It was about discipleship ❤️

He gathered his children close and said something like:

“The evergreen reminds us that God’s love never fades.

And these lights remind us that Jesus is the Light of the world.”

Then he pointed them to Jesus’ own words:

✝️ “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

— John 8:12

That night, a tree preached a sermon 🌟

Light shone.

Hope filled the room.

But this story didn’t really start in a living room.

It started in a garden 🌱

In Eden, God placed two trees at the center of creation—the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.

📖 “In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.”

— Genesis 2:9

At that first tree, humanity reached out in disobedience.

Sin entered.

Darkness followed 🌑

But God didn’t walk away from the story 💛

Centuries later, another tree stood at the center of history—

not in a garden,

but on a hill.

The cross ✝️

There, Jesus stretched out His hands and reversed what had been lost.

✨ “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us…”

— Galatians 3:13

The first tree brought death.

The second tree brought life 🌿

This is how the early church explained the gospel—especially to children 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦

At the first tree, Adam reached out his hands… and death came.

At the second tree, Jesus stretched out His hands… and life was restored ❤️

📖 “Through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.”

— Romans 5:19

✝️ “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree…”

— 1 Peter 2:24

Children weren’t taught to fear the cross.

They were taught to see it as the place where love won 💖

And the story doesn’t stop there.

Because of Jesus, the Tree of Life will one day be restored 🌳✨

🌿 “Blessed are those who… have the right to the tree of life.”

— Revelation 22:14

A tree where we fell.

A tree where we were forgiven.

A tree where we will be healed forever 🌈

That’s why symbols matter—not to distract us, but to help us remember 🕊️

Every Christmas, we put lights on a tree 🎄✨

Not to worship it…

but to remember redemption.

🌟 “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light.”

— Isaiah 9:2

🌊 “The tree of life… and the leaves are for the healing of the nations.”

— Revelation 22:2

From the garden 🌱

to the cross ✝️

to eternity 🌅

God has been telling one redemption story all along.

And at Christmas, the light shines again ✨

💡 “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

— John 1:5

This is what Christmas is about.

Not perfection.

Not arguments.

Not origins.

But Jesus ❤️

👀 “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus…”

— Hebrews 12:2

The enemy loves it when believers argue over symbols.

Jesus invites us to shine 🌟

If a tree with lights helps a child ask questions…

If it opens the door for conversation…

If it softens a heart toward Christ…

✨ Then let it shine. ✨

Because Christmas isn’t about where traditions started.

It’s about who they point to now.

And they point to Jesus ✝️

⸻

🤍 SATURDAY REFLECTION QUESTIONS

1. When I see Christmas lights, do they remind me of Jesus as the Light of the world? 💡

2. How can I intentionally use traditions to share my faith this season? 🌲

3. Who in my life needs the light of Christ right now? 🕯️

⸻

🎶 SATURDAY WORSHIP SONG

“Light of the World (Sing Hallelujah)” — We The Kingdom